The marvelous spatuletail (''Loddigesia mirabilis'') is an

Endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inva ...

species of hummingbird in the "brilliants", tribe

Heliantheini Heliantheini is one of the two tribes that make up the subfamily Lesbiinae of the hummingbird family Trochilidae. The other tribe in the subfamily is Lesbiini. The informal name "brilliants" has been proposed for this group as it includes the ge ...

in subfamily

Lesbiinae Lesbiinae is one of the six subfamily, subfamilies that make up the hummingbird family (biology), family Trochilidae. The subfamily is divided into two Tribe (biology), tribes: Heliantheini ("brilliants") containing 14 genera and Lesbiini ("coqu ...

. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to northern Peru.HBW and BirdLife International (2020) ''Handbook of the Birds of the World and BirdLife International digital checklist of the birds of the world'' Version 5. Available at: http://datazone.birdlife.org/userfiles/file/Species/Taxonomy/HBW-BirdLife_Checklist_v5_Dec20.zip xls zipped 1 MB Retrieved 27 May 2021

Taxonomy and systematics

The marvelous spatuletail is currently (early 2022) treated by worldwide taxonomic systems as the only member of its genus.Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2021. The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2021. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/ Retrieved 25 August 2021 However, a

molecular phylogenetic Molecular phylogenetics () is the branch of phylogeny that analyzes genetic, hereditary molecular differences, predominantly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. From these analyses, it is possible to ...

study of the hummingbirds published in 2014 found that the marvelous spatuletail was embedded in genus ''

Eriocnemis ''Eriocnemis'' is a genus of hummingbirds, which - together with the species in the genus ''Haplophaedia'' - are known as pufflegs. They occur in humid forest, woodland and shrub at altitudes of 1000 to 4800 m. asl in the Andes of Argentina, Bol ...

'', the "pufflegs". Moving it to ''Eriocnemis'' would require that the

colorful puffleg The colorful puffleg (''Eriocnemis mirabilis'') is an Endangered species of hummingbird in the "brilliants", tribe Heliantheini in subfamily Lesbiinae. It is endemic to Colombia.HBW and BirdLife International (2020) ''Handbook of the Birds o ...

(currently ''E. mirabilis'') receive a new

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

because the spatuletail's ''mirabilis'' has priority.Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, J. F. Pacheco, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. Version 31 January 2022. A classification of the bird species of South America. American Ornithological Society. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCBaseline.htm. Retrieved 1 February 2022

Description

The male marvelous spatuletail is long including its tail. Females are long with a tail. The male's signature feature is its two outer tail feathers with bare shafts that cross each other and end in large purplish black racquets or "spatules". The remaining tail feathers are very short and are supported by two long undertail

coverts A covert feather or tectrix on a bird is one of a set of feathers, called coverts (or ''tectrices''), which, as the name implies, cover other feathers. The coverts help to smooth airflow over the wings and tail. Ear coverts The ear coverts are sm ...

. The female's outer tail feathers are also long, but shorter than the male's, and do not have the racquets.Züchner, T. and P. F. D. Boesman (2020). Marvelous Spatuletail (Loddigesia mirabilis), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.marspa1.01. Retrieved 23 April 2022 Both sexes have a slightly decurved black bill and a white spot behind the eye. Males have mostly green upperparts with a blue crest and a brownish hindneck. Their

gorget A gorget , from the French ' meaning throat, was a band of linen wrapped around a woman's neck and head in the medieval period or the lower part of a simple chaperon hood. The term later described a steel or leather collar to protect the thro ...

is glossy blue-green and the rest of the underparts are white with a black line down the center. Females are also green above but do not have a crest or gorget. Their underparts are white without the male's black central line.

Distribution and habitat

The marvelous spatuletail is found only in a small area of northern Peru. Most records are from the valley of the Utcubamba River in Amazonas Department with a few further east in the

Department of San Martín San Martín () is a department and region in northern Peru. Most of the department is located in the upper part of the Peruvian Amazon rainforest. Its capital is Moyobamba and the largest city in the department is Tarapoto. Geography Boundar ...

. It inhabits the edges of mature forest,

secondary forest A secondary forest (or second-growth forest) is a forest or woodland area which has re-grown after a timber harvest or clearing for agriculture, until a long enough period has passed so that the effects of the disturbance are no longer evident. ...

, and montane scrublands. It is partial to thickets of thorny ''

Rubus ''Rubus'' is a large and diverse genus of flowering plants in the rose family, Rosaceae, subfamily Rosoideae, with over 1,350 species. Raspberries, blackberries, and dewberries are common, widely distributed members of the genus. Most of these ...

'' with alder (''

Alnus Alders are trees comprising the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus comprises about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few spec ...

''). In elevation it ranges between though there are unconfirmed reports both higher and lower.

Behavior

Movement

The marvelous spatuletail is a year-round resident of its range.

Feeding

The marvelous spatuletail forages by

trap-lining In ethology and behavioral ecology, trap-lining or traplining is a feeding strategy in which an individual visits food sources on a regular, repeatable sequence, much as trappers check their lines of traps. Traplining is usually seen in species ...

, visiting a circuit of flowering plants where it perches to feed. It is most often seen feeding at a red-flowered lily (''

Bomarea ''Bomarea'' is one of the two major genus, genera in the plant family Alstroemeriaceae. Most occur in the Andes,Guarin, F. A. (2005)Three new species of ''Bomarea'' (Alstroemeriaceae) from the Andean region of Colombia.''Novon'' 15(2) 253-58. but ...

formosissima'') but has been observed feeding in at least five other species of flowering plants. It is dominated by other hummingbird species that share its range.

Breeding

Little is known about the marvelous spatuletail's breeding

phenology Phenology is the study of periodic events in biological life cycles and how these are influenced by seasonality, seasonal and interannual variations in climate, as well as environmental factor, habitat factors (such as elevation). Examples includ ...

. Its breeding season appears to be between December and February but may extend from October to May. Males gather at

leks A lek is an aggregation of male animals gathered to engage in competitive displays and courtship rituals, known as lekking, to entice visiting females which are surveying prospective partners with which to mate. A lek can also indicate an avail ...

and perform an aerial display.

Vocalization

The male marvelous spatuletail gives "a repeated high-pitched buzzy metallic note...'tzzz...tzzz...'" during its aerial display. Its calls include "an upslurred high-pitched sweet note 'tswee'" and "a more strident 'tsik'".

Status

The

IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

originally assessed the marvelous spatuletail as Threatened, then in 1994 rated it as Vulnerable and since 2000 as Endangered. It is known from only two general areas and its population is thought to be smaller than 1000 mature individuals. Deforestation is rampant in its range though the species' preference for edge and scrubby habitats may somewhat ameliorate its effects. Males are hunted for

traditional medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) comprises medical aspects of traditional knowledge that developed over generations within the folk beliefs of various societies, including indigenous peoples, before the ...

, as their hearts are believed to be an

aphrodisiac An aphrodisiac is a substance that increases sexual desire, sexual attraction, sexual pleasure, or sexual behavior. Substances range from a variety of plants, spices, foods, and synthetic chemicals. Natural aphrodisiacs like cannabis or cocain ...

. In 2005,

American Bird Conservancy American Bird Conservancy (ABC) is a non-profit membership organization with the mission of conserving wild birds and their habitats throughout the Americas. Its focus is on threats to birds in the Western Hemisphere – threats which include ov ...

provided Peruvian conservation partner ECOAN with support to sign a conservation easement with the Pomacochas Community to protect and manage about of significant habitat for the marvelous spatuletail. Over 30,000 saplings of native trees and bushes have been planted there. This conservation easement is the first of its kind in Peru.

In popular media

The marvelous spatuletail has been featured on the PBS TV series ''

Nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physics, physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomenon, phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. ...

'' and two BBC TV series, ''

Natural World ''Natural World'' is a strand of British wildlife documentary programmes broadcast on BBC Two and BBC Two HD and regarded by the BBC as its flagship natural history series. It is the longest-running documentary in its genre on British televisi ...

'' and ''

Life Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energ ...

''.''Natural World'' Episode 5. "Attenborough's Ark: Natural World Special", 9 November 2012

References

External links

Marvelous Spatuletail photo gallery
at VIREO {{Taxonbar, from=Q544000

marvellous spatuletail The marvelous spatuletail (''Loddigesia mirabilis'') is an Endangered species of hummingbird in the "brilliants", tribe Heliantheini in subfamily Lesbiinae. It is endemic to northern Peru.HBW and BirdLife International (2020) ''Handbook of the ...

Hummingbird species of South America Birds of the Peruvian Andes Endemic birds of Peru